A man who witnessed the fatal shooting of his wife, Kalonniann Clark, told police he believes other men who are not charged with the crime could be her killers.

The information emerged during a 2007 interview Nicholas James had with a Denver detective and a prosecutor, but, for 2 1/2 years, prosecutors failed to turn it over to defense attorneys representing the men who are charged.

Willie D. Clark and Shun Birch are charged with murdering Kalonniann Clark on Dec. 6, 2006, at the urging of Brian Kenneth Hicks.

Hicks, who is described by police as the leader of a Denver gang, was in jail when the homicide occurred, but prosecutors say he ordered her killed because she was going to testify that he tried to shoot her outside a Denver nightclub in 2005.

The trio will be tried separately. Opening statements in Birch’s trial are expected Aug. 31.

On Friday, defense lawyers for Hicks, Willie Clark and Birch asked Denver District Judge Christina Habas to dismiss the murder case and to issue sanctions against Denver police and prosecutors.

The sanctions suggested by the defense lawyers include appointing a special prosecutor, ordering the prosecution to agree that James identified another person other than Willie Clark as the assailant, and instruct the jury that the videotaped interview was withheld from the defense. They also want to preclude Detective Joel Humphrey — the lead detective on the case — from testifying.

In an initial response, prosecutor Tim Twining conceded the James interview was turned over late but said it was “due to inadvertence” and not bad faith.

When prosecutor Bruce Levin retired, another prosecutor inventoried what remained in the file and came across the tape containing the interview and turned it over to the defense on May 26.

“This disclosure, although it could have been made earlier, was information that was already known to the defense by way of (James’) Grand Jury testimony and his approximately five other interviews that were disclosed,” Twining wrote.

The defense lawyers say prosecutors and police have engaged in a “pattern and practice” of discovery violations because evidence was also turned over late during Willie Clark’s murder trial in the case of Denver Broncos player Darrent Williams.

Twining denied there is a pattern.

“At best, this allegation is misleading,” he wrote in response to the motion to dismiss.

Birch’s attorney, Frank Moya, subpoenaed James, Humphrey and Levin so he could question them about the interview and why the information was provided late. He also expects to subpoena former prosecutor Dave Karpel, who was present during the interview.

The judge viewed the James interview in chambers at Friday’s hearing and decided to set an evidentiary hearing on the motion for Aug. 6.

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